Car-sharing comes to classics
With DriveShare, Michigan-based insurer Hagerty hopes to stoke fires of collector-car passion among a new generation
How about driving a 1981 DeLorean for $880 a day, or taking a spin in a 1967 Pontiac GTO for $215?
In its effort to get a slice of the mushrooming car-sharing revolution as well as build interest in historic cars among a generation raised on Uber, an auto insurance agency announced this week that it’s getting into the business.
Hagerty, a Michigan-based insurer that specializes in classic cars, is going to jump-start its entry through its purchase of Classics & Exotics, which it is renaming DriveShare.
Several hundred cars ranging from a vintage Ford Model A to a new Lamborghini Aventador are going to be available in dozens of U.S. cities, the agency says. Hagerty said each one will be vetted by its experts to ensure a troublefree experience.
Those interested in renting the cars need to be at least age 30. And they need to be aware that they’re driving someone’s baby.
“Our main focus is building out of the ‘trust engine,’ ” says Hagerty CEO McKeel Hagerty, whose family company started out insuring wooden boats and graduated to vintage automobiles. He expects the selection of cars to grow as current insurance customers get wind of the service.
“The equation is a reputable car on one side, owned by someone who’d like to make some extra money and share the vehicle they love. And on the other, a thoughtful driver who is careful and curious about what these amazing machines are all about,” he said.
Part of Hagerty’s motivation is stoking the fires of collector car passion among a new generation of drivers who increasingly have come to see the automobile as an appliance and not a treasured possession.
If hooked, they could eventually add to the company’s customer base.
In fact, the growth of ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft as well as the proliferation of car-sharing options leave many experts wondering whether cars are destined to be the horsedrawn buggies of the mid-21st century, something to be driven as an adventure on a sunny week- Hagerty’s new DriveShare platform connects owners of classic sports cars, like this Porsche, above, with renters in an effort to boost fascination with the classic car hobby as well as capture a slice of the car-sharing market. end but not relied upon as transport.
But the creation of DriveShare is another way to drive profits for a new stream, one that might be necessary if classic car ownership — and its related insurance needs — start to shrink as Boomers age.
“The core of the hobby is still people over 50, the Boomers, so we view this as a major play for a future based on a sharing economy,” Hagerty says. “Besides, the best (classic) cars are so expensive, which means there’s a financial barrier to entry for Millennials. But if you’ve got an interest in an enthusiast car but can’t yet afford one, DriveShare can give you that experience. And that’s a win for us.”